ALPHA ONYX {BOOK 1}

(5) Goodbye cruel world.

With his words ringing in our ears, we took off sprinting blindly into the depths of the dark forest. I stumbled and fumbled, my every step hindered by hidden roots and treacherous bloody rocks. It was as if the whole forest conspired to trip me up, testing my resolve. Meanwhile, the girl beside me seemed to glide effortlessly, her movements akin to those of a nocturnal creature with built-in night vision.

How convenient for her.

My body screamed with exhaustion, every muscle protesting as I pushed myself beyond my limits, propelled by the surge of adrenaline that pulsed through my veins.

Gasping for breath, I leaned over, my hands resting on my knees.

I need to step up my cardio.

"What exactly is after us?" I managed to utter between breaths, the words punctuated by the heaving of my chest.

The girl halts in her tracks. "Keep moving!"

"No need to get your knickers in a twist," I pant out trying to catch my breath. "Unlike you, I don't have rocket boosters hidden in my shoes, mate. I could use a minute here."

"We don't have a minute to spare," she hisses. "You'll just have to settle for a breather on the go. Now move!"

"Who are the hunters?" I asked, my curiosity overrode my fatigue.

The girl let out an exasperated sigh and flung her arms up in the air. "Are you kidding me right now?"

I furrowed my brow, not appreciating her attitude. "Are they like bounty hunters or something? Did you lot rob a bank, and now they're after you?"

"That's none of your business."

I rolled my eyes, unimpressed by her snarky response. "Look, I'm just trying to make sense of this madness. If you're not gonna give me a straight answer, then maybe you can at least dial down the bloody attitude."

She scoffed, crossing her arms. "Attitude? You haven't seen anything yet. You're lucky I'm even sticking around to save your sorry ass."

I gritted my teeth, frustration bubbling up inside me. "Well, forgive me for not rolling out the bloody red carpet for my saviour of the day. I mean, it's not like you and your charming crew abducted me or anything!" I shot back.

Suddenly the distinct sound of gunshots in the distance pierced the air around us, rudely interrupting our intense stare-down.

"Still wanna have this conversation now?"

"Maybe... later." My voice trembles.

We sprinted off without hesitation, our feet pounding against the ground.

"Keep moving! You're slowing us down!" she bellowed.

While I clumsily stumbled and fought to maintain my balance, desperately attempting to avoid a face-planting tragedy with each inevitable trip and stumble along the way.

"Sure thing mate," I snap, glaring daggers at her. This bitch. "Let me just wave my magical wand and conjure up my night vision goggles! Because, you know, it's totally expected that I'd be kidnapped, drugged and dragged across the country, ambushed by Godzilla, and chased by trigger-happy goons through a pitch-black, dense forest. Clearly, I must have purposely left my night vision goggles at home sitting pretty on my bloody nightstand!"

With a curt snap in her tone, she shot back, "This is hardly the time for clever remarks."

"Well, I am exceptionally intelligent, so the cleverness just oozes naturally," I sassily replied, only to have my words abruptly swallowed by an eerie, bone-chilling howl that sent shivers down my spine.